The Prospect Artists Studio Tour has one advantage over the area's other studio tours.

All the locations are within walking distance of one another.

Studio tours often involve lots of driving from one studio to another. Not in Prospect. The tour, which is planned for the afternoons of June 22-23, includes 10 locations, and visitors may complete the entirety of the tour by parking in the neighborhood and hitting it all on foot.

That's not the only attraction of the tour, though, as artists in Prospect will tell you. It includes the exhibition of some great art, displayed right where it's made. Also, it's not just about the art. It's about the community of Prospect, the funky neighborhood in south Longmont with the weird-looking houses and funny street names.

"You get to see the inside of our strange houses," said Suzanne Frazier, an artist who is one of the organizers of the tour.

The tour, set up by the Prospect Artists Association, is really a showcase of the whole Prospect community, she said. At least 20 businesses in the neighborhood sponsor the tour, and Frazier views the tour as an opportunity to get to know Prospect for all it has to offer.

"We're sponsored by most of the businesses in Prospect," she said. "It's not just about the artists, It's about the businesses ... We're hoping people will spend a day there."

The neighborhood, being an architectural work of art in itself, attracts lots of artists, and those who live there make art of all kinds.

Maureen Ruddy Burkhart is a photographer, and lately she's been making art with her iPhone, on which she works with up to 30 apps to make stunning composite pictures. The images are the work of an accomplished and sensitive artist, but the apps through which they're made are easier to master than one might think.

"Pensive," by Suzanne Frazier, whose works will be part of the Prospect Artists Studio Tour.
(Suzanne Frazier/Courtesy photo)

"Just about anyone can learn to use them pretty quickly," Burkhart said.

She has come to appreciate the benefits of working right on her phone.

"It's very spontaneous," she said, "and you have your digital darkroom with you at all times, so it doesn't tie you to your computer."

Burkhart recently exhibited work at The Dairy Center for the Arts in Boulder. Another artist on the Prospect tour, Julie Clement, recently earned local recognition for "Venus and Sun," a mural she installed at the Longmont Museum.

Brenda Ferrimani, who makes what she calls "dream art," plans to showcase new work she made based on dreams she has had since a trip she took to the Netherlands. She visited the Rolduc Abbey, where she had paranormal experiences, she said.

"We had some connections with some spirits there," she said.

Ferrimani believes dreams are insights into a deep vein of consciousness, and she explores that idea through her art.

"We can see into the future," she said, "we can have knowledge of the past."

She believes the Prospect Artists Studio Tour is an opportunity to enjoy the full Prospect experience.

"I think everybody who comes to Prospect is interested in the colorful flavor of the architecture. That's all part of the experience," she said. "I think it's a full-day experience, and you don't have to feel rushed, so you can stay and talk to the artists."

Artists will have work for sale, and prices will range from several dollars to several thousands of dollars.

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